In the book of the Exodus, God chose a unique way to lead the children of Israel to the promised land.
He used a cloud by day, and a pillar of fire by night. When God desired to speak to Moses, He would come down in this cloud to the wilderness temple.
Nehemiah’s writings tells us that God never took these two signs away from the people until they reached their final destination.
So it took them 40 years to reach their destination. Did the cloud get lost? Did the flame lose its glow?
Of course not; the people’s stubbornness and unbelief caused them to have to go around the wilderness for that period. People were still trapped in slave mentality. For some, newfound freedom was more than they could bear.
In the Acts of the Apostles, we read of God once again providing a way for His people to know and experience His nearness by providing a cloud of sorts, along with fire.
In chapter 2, we read of the day that the Holy Spirit came down on the early believers with the sound of a rushing mighty wind (the cloud) and with split tongues as of fire that landed on each of them.
Jesus, in talking about the Holy Spirit’s role, stated that He will guide us in all truths. This Holy Spirit would fill us and go with us until we reach our final destination, heaven.
God does nothing happenstance — it is all designed for a reason; for our better understanding of His goodness and mercy. His fire and cloud in the Old Testament led the children out of their bondage and guided them to their promised land.
This foreshadowed the Holy Spirit being poured out in the form of the wind and fire to lead us out of sin’s slavery and deliver us. This allowed believers to have Him with us until we reach our final destiny.
Look for things in the Old Testament that foreshadow events in the new, and you will find a good and mighty God preparing a way for the church, the body of Christ.
The Rev. Richard Helms serves at Miracle Acres Ministries, 3187 E. James Lee Blvd., in Crestview.
This article originally appeared on Crestview News Bulletin: HELMS: Old Testament foreshadows Christ’s coming